THE CRAB-EAIING OPPOSSUM. 



THE crab-eating opossum (Philan- 

 der philander) is one of the 

 largest of the family. The body 

 is nine and one-half inches long, 

 and the tail nearly thirteen inches. It 

 has a wide range, extending throughout 

 all of tropical America. It is numerous 

 in the woods of Brazil, preferring the 

 proximity of swamps, which furnish it 

 with crabs. It lives almost exclusively 

 in trees, and descends to the ground only 

 when it wishes to forage. 



While it proceeds slowly and awk- 

 wardly on the ground, its prehensile tail 

 enables it to climb trees with some fa- 

 cility. This opossum readily entraps 

 smaller mammals, reptiles, and insects, 

 and especially crabs, which are its fa- 

 vorite food. It preys upon birds and 

 their nests, but it also eats fruit, and is 

 said to visit poultry yards and to cause 

 great devastation among chickens and 

 pigeons. 



The young of the crab-eating opos- 

 sum differ in color from the old animals. 

 They are completely naked at birth, but 

 when they are sufficiently developed to 

 leave the pouch, they grow a short, silky 

 fur of a shining nut-brown color, which 

 (gradually deepens into the dark brown- 

 ish-black color of maturity. All observers 

 agree that the little creatures escape 

 from the pouch and, moving around and 

 upon the mother's body, afford a charm- 

 ing spectacle. The pouch is formed by 

 two folds of skin, which are laid over 

 the unformed young attached to the 

 mammae. 



The opossum is extensively hunted 

 on account of the havoc it works among 

 poultry. 



The negroes are its enemies, and kill 

 it whenever and wherever they can. 

 The flesh is said to be unpalatable to 

 most white persons, for two glands im- 

 part a very strong and repellent odor of 

 garlic to it, but the negroes like it, and 

 the flesh repays them for the trouble of 

 the pursuit. The opossum, however, is 

 not easily killed, and resorts to dissimu- 

 lation when hard pressed, rolls up like a 

 ball, and feigns to be dead. To anyone 



not acquainted with its habits, the open 

 jaws, the extended tongue, the dimmed 

 eyes would be ample confirmation of it, 

 but the experienced observer knows that 

 it is only " 'possuming," and that it will 

 gradually get on its legs and make for 

 the woods. 



It is said that the opossum was for- 

 merly found in Europe, but now only 

 inhabits America. Nearly all of the 

 species live in the forest or in the un- 

 derbrush, making their homes in hollow 

 trees, holes in the ground, among thick 

 grass and in bushes. All are nocturnal 

 in their habits and lead a solitary, rov- 

 ing life. The opossum lives with its 

 mate only during the pairing time. It 

 has no fixed habitation. In captivity it 

 is the least interesting of animals. 

 Rolled up and motionless, it lies all day, 

 and only when provoked does it make 

 the slightest movement. It opens its 

 mouth as wide as possible, and for as 

 long a time as one stands before it, as 

 if it suffered from lockjaw. 



The opossum can hardly be classed 

 among the game animals of America, yet 

 its pursuit in the South in old plantation 

 days used to afford the staple amusement 

 for the dusky toilers of the cotton states. 

 It was the custom, as often as the late fall 

 days brought with them the ripened fruit 

 and golden grain, for the dark popula- 

 tion of the plantation, sometimes ac- 

 companied by young ''massa," to have a 

 grand 'possum hunt a la mode. We 

 would describe the method of taking it, 

 were it the policy of this magazine to 

 show approval of a most cruel practice. 

 Happily the custom, through change of 

 circumstances, has fallen into disuse. 



The specimen of this interesting ani- 

 m.al which we present in this number of 

 Birds and All Nature was captured, 

 with its mother and five young ones, in a 

 car load of bananasfi having traveled all 

 the way from the tropics to Chicago in a 

 crate of the fruit. The mother and 

 young were kept alive by eating the ba- 

 nanas, another proof that the crab-eat- 

 ing opossum does not feed exclusively 

 upon animal food. 



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